Saturday, 11 September 2010

Steve's "Air Trike"

A few days ago, Steve Ellis, another British resident of Assen got in touch and told me about his experimental "air trike" - a Sinner Comfort modified with the chain only turning a propeller on the back, and with no drive through the wheels.

Of course I had to go and take a look, and a test ride.

It's a strange experience. Initially there is very little resistance to the pedals. While at a standstill, the propeller is very inefficient and it takes a while to get moving. However, once you're moving the system is quite a bit more efficient and a reasonable speed can be maintained.

I know that Steve has some other ideas in mind, so I look forward to future developments.

Michael: It's difficult to find a real advantage - it's really just a bit of fun.

It's a proof of concept of sorts. And it's good to see how much it agrees with the theory surrounding propellers. At a standstill you do little but make the air turbulent, but as soon as you start moving it becomes very much more efficient.

However, it'll never be so efficient as simply driving the rear wheels with the chain.

Frits: It is potentially quite dangerous, but don't worry. We were careful, looking out for when other cyclists or pedestrians appeared. It's not about to be ridden through the centre of the city.

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